Dear old dad
by MysticFantasy
Summary: Billy and Joe head to Detroit not knowing they're being followed. Complications arise when their father finds out why they went to Detroit.
1. Prologue

**Dear old dad**

**By: MysticFantasy**

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Disclaimer: (_I own no part of either movie or the characters in them._)

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**Prologue**

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"Where the f**k do you two think you're goin' on such short notice?" Bones Darley demanded.

"None of your business." Billy Darley answered as he walked past his father toward his black mustang. "All you need to know is that we're gonna be outta town for a while."

"Then if I'm lucky, it'll be quite a while before you come back." Bones said as he watched his younger son, Joe, place a packed duffle bag into the back seat of Billy's car.

"We'll be lucky to not come back at all." Billy stated before sliding into the drivers seat with Joe in the passenger seat. The engine roared to life before reversing away from the body shop and then quickly heading down the street.

"Those two are f***ing up to something." Bones muttered to himself before heading back into his shop. He made his way through the quiet building, went out back and walked into the small house that was located only a few feet behind the shop.

He walked in and right away went straight to Billy's room.

At first glance he didn't see anything out of the ordinary but he knew Billy was always keeping things from him.

Bones made his way over to the worn out desk that was located in a corner of the room. He right away spotted a photo that he hadn't seen in nearly sixteen years.

"Look at that." he muttered picking up the picture that was of three young boys. He looked at the youngest in the photo who held a striking resemblance to the two older boys. "Little Jackie. Almost forgot about you kid. Been years since I've seen you."

Placing the photo back where it was, Bones continued his search in hopes of figuring out where his two sons had run off to. A normal person would first check the drawers of a desk but Bones knew better. He knew Billy wasn't an idiot.

Kneeling down, Bones looked under the desk and right away spotted a few white envelopes taped under the desk. Grabbing them, he yanked them out and sat on the unmade bed to examin them.

"What the f**k?" he muttered to himself as he looked at the name and address of who sent the letter.

_Jack Mercer_

_P.O. Box 934 Detroit, Michigan_

"My little Jackie is still alive." Bones mused to himself as he pulled out the letter from the last envelope which turned out to be the most recent letter.

_Dear Billy and Joe_

_I can't wait to see you guys. Having you guys here will really mean the world to me. Especially since my birthday is only three days away. I still can't believe that I'm already gonna be twenty. Bobby is already planning a party for my birthday and he says that this one will be the most memorable for various reasons. Knowing him, he's gonna humiliate me in every way he can. As if he doesn't already._

_But he'll have the memorable part right. Having him, Jerry and Angel here along with you two will make this birthday the best by far. _

_I'll see you guys soon. Be careful driving here._

_Love,_

_Jack._

Bones folded the letter, placed it back in the envelope, wrote down the address on a piece of paper, taped the small stack under the desk where he found it and made his way to his own room.

He went to his closet, grabbed his suitcase, placed it on his bed and started filling it with his clothing and a few weapons.

"Jackie's birthday is coming up. As his father, I should be there to wish him a happy birthday."


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

**By: MysticFantasy**

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Billy lightly yawned as he came around the corner. He parked the car and noticed that a dim light in the upstairs window was on.

He smiled and honked twice before cutting the engine. He noticed someone look through the blinds of the lit window before they vanished.

"Joe. Wake up." Billy said shaking his younger brothers shoulder.

Joe stired and woke up as Billy climbed out of the car.

The older brother walked onto the sidewalk right as the front door opened and someone hurried over to him.

Billy smiled greatly when his baby brother, Jack, threw his arms around him and he copied the gesture.

"Hey Jackie. Happy birthday kiddo." he said before pulling back and allowing Joe to hug their youngest brother.

Billy turned and did the homie hug with Bobby who was still clad in his sleep sweats.

"Hey Billy. How you been man?" the oldest Mercer son greeted.

"Doin' good Bobby." Billy answered. "How you been? Keepin' straight?"

Bobby chuckled which made Billy laugh as well.

"Bobby you better be keeping straight." a female voice warned.

"Hello Ms. Mercer." Billy greeted and accepted the hug Jack's adoptive mother gave him.

"Hello Billy." Evelyn greeted pulling back. "And how many times do I have to tell you? You can call me Evelyn. You're Jackie's brother so I like to think of you as my son as well. You don't have to be so formal with me."

"I can't help it." Billy chuckled as Joe hugged Evelyn. "Until the papers are officially signed I can't help but call you Ms. Mercer."

"Well there's only a week left before we get the papers through the mail. Once we get them we just go to the courthouse, sign them and the both of you will officially be Mercer's." Evelyn mused.

"Then you'll be stuck with us for the rest of your lives." Bobby said in playfully dramatic manner as he lead the way into the house.

"You guys sure you wanna be stuck with Bobby for the rest of your lives?" Jack asked.

"Fairy!" Bobby exclaimed making everyone laugh.

"So what do you wanna do for your birthday kiddo?" Billy asked ruffling Jack's hair.

"We've got a party planned for him later on." Angel said.

"It better not be at that bar." Evelyn warned. "Jackie's still got another year before I allow him to go to one of those places instead of him sneaking off with you boys getting him in."

"Ma, I never heard of such a thing." Bobby exclaimed in fake offensiveness.

"Don't be cute with me Robert Mercer. I know you've gotten Jackie into that bar you always go to." Evelyn declared with a smirk. "Billy, please tell me that you haven't gotten Jack into a bar."

"I haven't." Billy said.

"Good." Evelyn said. "If Jackie's going to drink for his birthday I'd rather him do it here instead of a dirty bar."

"So...you'll let him drink? Just for his birthday?" Bobby asked.

"If he's going to drink on his birthday, I don't want him drinking more than three bottles and it has to be here. And each of you has to keep an eye on him."

"Deal." Bobby exclaimed.

"Well, for now let's get Billy and Joe some time to rest." Evelyn said. "I know how you two drive. Fast and straight through the night."

Joe nervously chuckled as he rubbed the back of his head. It seemed that Evelyn could see right through him and Billy. All she had to do was look them straight in the eyes and they would start confessing.

Jack chuckled and showed his two blood brothers upstairs to the guest room.

"I swear, she gets me to confess more than the cops." Joe exclaimed as they walked into the guest room that had once been Jerry's room.

"Same with me Joey." Billy agreed.

"She gets me every time." Jack stated. "You guys should see how she interrogates Bobby when she _knows_ he's been up to something."

"I'd like to see that Jackie." Billy said removing his jacket.

"Well, rest up guys. It's barely seven and we don't have to do anything until later on." Jack advised.

"Alright Jackie. We'll sleep for a while and when we get up we'll spend the entire day doing what you want." Billy said hugging his little brother once more and was joined by Joe.

"I'm really glad you guys are here for this." Jack said softly.

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"I'm going back to bed. It's too early to be up." Bobby said.

"Me too." Angel added as he vanished into his room.

"I think we all should." Evelyn said. "It's not even seven yet. Come on Jackie. Let's go back to sleep."

Jack nodded and went into his room.

Once Bobby saw that Jack's door was closed and the light was off he went into the guest room and saw that Billy and Joe were still awake.

"How's the house coming along?" Billy answered.

"Just gotta give the first month and it's set." Bobby answered. "Man, Jack's gonna flip out when he finds out you guys are moving in next door."

"I wouldn't be surprised if we gave him a heart attack from the surprise." Joe claimed as he removed his shoes.

"I brought some cash. I'll pay the guy tomorrow that way we can spend the day with Jack." Billy said.

"Awesome. How are you gonna handle your gang back in Boston though?" Bobby asked.

"They know what's going on and asked if they could come with us. I said they could but I already let them know that if they do come that we're going to go legit. Your mom is taking the two of us into her family and I don't want her to think I'll be setting a bad example for Jack."

"As long as she knows that you're trying to keep straight she'll be happy." Bobby said.

"I already found a place to open up a new body shop. Just gotta get the permits and stuff for it." Billy said.

"There'll be plenty of time for that while you're here. But for now we should get some sleep. Like I told Jack, it's too early for me to be up." Bobby said.

"Us too." Joe agreed.

"Well the two of you have a good reason to sleep in and I'd take advantage of it." Bobby said with a chuckle.

"We might." Billy said before Bobby decided to let them be so they could get some rest.

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Billy sat up with a light yawn and heard someone walk into the room.

"Get enough sleep?" Jack quietly asked since Joe was still sleeping.

"I did." Billy answered. "What time is it?"

"Ten thirty." Jack answered. "We all slept in but you and Joe can still crash a little longer if you want. I bet that drive was pretty exhausting."

"It wasn't that bad of a drive Jackie. We made good time." Billy said getting up. "Wanted to make sure we got here in time so we could spend as much time with you as possible. You only turn twenty once after all."

Jack smiled.

"Well, lunch is almost ready. Since Joe is still asleep you can grab the bathroom while you can."

"Good idea Jackie." Billy said grabbing his bag. "You always were the smart one."

Jack chuckled as he followed Billy out of the room. While his older brother went into the bathroom to freshen up, Jack went back downstairs and into the kitchen to help his mother finish making lunch.

"Are Billy and Joe awake?" Evelyn asked.

"Billy is and just went into the bathroom. Joe's still out cold though. I'll get him up in a bit." he answered.

Evelyn smiled.

"I can tell that you're happy to have them here." she said giving him a small hug.

"I am." Jack said. "It's great having Bobby, Jerry and Angel here while we're with you. It's even better with Billy and Joe here."

"More memorable for all of us." Evelyn agreed. "Soon they'll be Mercer's and I'll have more handfuls."

Jack chuckled.

"No argument." he said and suddenly found himself in a playful headlock.

"I heard that Jackie." Billy said with a grin. "You calling me a pain?"

"Hey, you can't start the birthday wrestle without me!" Bobby declared walking in and grabbing Jack by his feet while Billy supported the upper half. "To the living room. Time for your favorite part of your birthday Jackie!"

"No!" Jack cried struggling to get free as he was carried out of the kitchen and into the living room.

Evelyn laughed the entire time.

The birthday wrestle had all been Bobby's idea after Angel became part of the family and had gotten Jack involved on the second birthday he had been with them. The birthday boy would always get pinned or twisted enough to be sore the rest of the day.

"Hey, wait for me." she heard Angel yell and saw him run from the stairs and into the living room to join in the making of making Jack miserable for the next few minutes.

"Poor Jackie." she laughed as she returned to making lunch and the sounds of wrestling began.

"Let go!"

"Not a chance Jackie!"

"He's crawling!"

"Grab his leg!"

"Ow!"

"Hold him down!"

"Pin him! Pin him!"

"Angel! Start the count!"

Joe suddenly walked into the kitchen looking amused.

"You sure you'd want to have us around with that going on all the time?" he asked with a smirk.

"Joey, Bobby was like that by himself before the rest came along." Evelyn stated. "Besides, I love seeing Jackie so happy like this. I don't ever want to see that taken away from him."

"Well, I hope you have great house insurance cause that might be happening everyday." Joe said motioning toward the living room.

Evelyn chuckled and watched Joe head toward the entertainment.

"Enjoying your birthday Jackie?" Bobby's voice asked.

"I'm gonna get you guys back for this!" Jack's strained voice laughed.

Evelyn began setting the table for all of them and finished frosting the cake she'd made earlier that morning while everyone else was still asleep.

The sounds of the boys wrestling drowned out all other noise and she would catch them twisting Jack's body when she would place dishes on the table. Once the dishes were done she put the final touches on the cake and carried it to the table.

"Come on everyone." Evelyn said placing the cake on the table. "Time for Jack to blow out the candles."

"Come on fairy." Bobby said picking up the youngest from the floor and leading him to the table where he sat him at the head of the table.

"No singing please." Jack said.

"Yes singing." Evelyn replied as she finished lighting the twenty blue candles that were in the form of a 20. "Come on everyone."

"_Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday dear Jack. Happy birthday to you."_

"Make a wish Jack." Jerry said.

"Wish to be straight." Bobby said.

"I'll wish for you to loose your hockey stick." Jack replied.

"You do and if it happens I will kill you."

"Bobby!"

"Hey knows I'm sorta kidding."

"Make a wish and blow out the candles Jackie-poo." Angel said.

Jack chuckled before blowing out the candles with Evelyn taking a picture of it.

"Alright, let's eat." she announced as everyone sat down.

Jack watched as his mother and brothers sat at the table and started to fill their plates.

"So where is this party that you've got planned for Jack?" Evelyn asked.

"Chuck E Cheese." Bobby answered and laughed at the angry and annoyed glare Jack sent him.

"Tell me later than." Evelyn said. "Let's just enjoy lunch quietly."

"That could count as a birthday wish." Jack muttered. "A good one."

"Can it Jackie. Just eat and we'll give you your present when we're done." Bobby said.

The youngest gave a suspicious look to the oldest man but returned to his birthday lunch. After finishing his lunch and having two pieces of cake, Jack was blindfolded and led into the living room.

"This isn't gonna be like last year is it?" Jack asked.

"Maybe." Bobby answered with a grin that Jack could just feel on his brothers face.

"What happened last year?" Jack heard Billy ask.

He understood the question since Billy and Joe hadn't been able to make it to his birthday last year because they couldn't risk leaving Boston on the same day the year before as they did today otherwise their father would surely suspect something and start asking questions. Instead they had spent two weeks with him during the early summer which meant they had to miss Jack's birthday.

They still sent their wishes to the youngest and mailed him presents from them and from the members of the gang who remembered Jack before he had been taken away.

"Believe me it was memorable." Jerry's voice answered with a chuckle.

"And incredibly humiliating." Jack added feeling himself being pushed down to sit on the armchair.

"For you." Angel said. "But it was fun for us."

"A**hole." Jack muttered.

"Alright Jack. Just stay there." Bobby said.

"Like I have a choice." Jack muttered stupidly and heard his mother laugh. He then heard a few shuffling noises and someone mutter a painful curse which made him curious as to what his present was.

He only believed that his brothers knew he wanted a guitar he had seen at the music store in the mall. But the way his brothers sounded...Jack didn't think there was a guitar he knew of that sounded as big, or as painful, as this one.

He heard a few more noises before he heard silence.

"Ready Jackie?" Evelyn asked.

"I'm not gonna get a cream pie in the face again am I?"

"No you fairy." Bobby answered through a chuckle. "Take the blindfold off you sissy."

Jack lightly sighed and removed his blindfold. Once his vision cleared his eyes went wide as the sight that lay before him.

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"Come on Jack, you've been playing that thing ever since we got back from the pizza joint." Bobby pleaded. "Turn it off for a while. You're gonna break it and it's brand new."

"No. It's my birthday and I'll play as long as I want."

"Spoiled brat."

"You know it. I am the youngest after all."

Billy laughed as Jack continued to strum a few chords to a rock song on his brand new black electric guitar with two bright light blue lightning bolts on the sides. The guitar was hooked up to the new amp system that he set up in the garage to break it in.

The five older men had kept Jack company as he sat in the garage playing a few songs. A single heater kept the small garage warm and it was when the sun had started to set that the beer came out.

The older men were keeping their promise to Evelyn about Jack drinking but they were helping themselves to the remains.

Jack felt a little jealous that he could only have three beers but knew that it would please his mother to know he didn't drink more. He did feel guilty knowing that she knew his brothers got him into bars without her permission and that he drank while underaged. He could at least do her this favor and slow himself down.

After all, there was only one year left before she did allow him to drink wherever and whatever he liked. He could hold out for that long. Hopefully.

Deciding to give his oldest brother a break, Jack turned off his amps and set his guitar down on the stand.

"Thank you." Bobby sighed and handed Jack his first beer.

"Cry baby." Jack muttered opening his beer and taking a long drink.

"So what do you guys tell your old man when you get back to Boston?" Jerry asked curiously.

"We just tell him that we got hammered or stoned enough to where we couldn't remember where we went." Joe answered. "If he doesn't buy that then we just say that we went with some of the guys in our gang to check out other possible locations that we could profit from."

"I'd believe that." Bobby said before taking a drink of his beer.

"Well luckily he doesn't care enough to ask or he's usually stoned out of his mind to forget that we were gone." Billy said. "Works out for us either way. We get to spend time with the runt and old pops doesn't ask about it."

"Thank God." Jack declared before finishing his drink.

"Amen to that Jackie." Joe agreed as Bobby handed Jack his second beer and the rest moved onto their third or fourth.

They talked for a while longer before Jerry pointed out that it was almost eleven and decided he needed to get back home.

"I think we should get inside too. It's starting to get cold out here." Angel said standing with the rest of the men following him.

Bobby turned the small heater off and they exited the garage with Bobby securily locking the door.

"This was an awesome birthday." Jack said before taking a drink of his beverage.

"Sure was." Bobby agreed as they made their way toward the front of the yard. "Here's to Jackie on his twentieth birthday!"

"Cheers!"

Jack smiled with a faint blush as they clicked their beer bottles. He wasn't use to being the center of attention even on his birthday but he did admit that it felt nice to have all of his brothers here with him and giving him their complete attention.

He took a drink of his beer and reached the front sidewalk. He stopped on the hard cement when he noticed a tall but heavy set figure walking over in a dark jacket.

Jack squinted his eyes slightly to see if he could see the person who was walking toward him. Almost instantly, his mind recognized who the person was and his eyes went wide with his whole body freezing.

Billy looked up when he heard Jack gasp and the shattering of his beer bottle hitting the hard ground. He looked over to where Jack's eyes were and felt himself freeze.

Quickly gathering himself he rushed in front of Jack and had his pistol aimed at the man who stopped in his tracks once the gun was spotted.

"WHAT THE F**K ARE YOU DOING HERE?" he shouted.

Bobby, Jerry and Angel were completely confused watching Billy stand in front of Jack with his gun raised to the stranger and then watched Joe stand protectively in front of Jack like a human shield.

"What's going on?" Bobby asked as he stood next to Billy with his hand resting on his own pistol. "Who the hell is he?"

"Trouble is all." Billy answered. "He ain't got no business bein' here."

"You know d**n well that's a lie Billy." the man answered. "I have every right as a father to wish my youngest son a happy birthday."

"What?" Bobby gasped. "What did you say?"

"I'm Bones Darley. I'm their father."


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

**By: MysticFantasy**

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"You ain't his father." Billy said. "You forgot about him only a few days after you got out of jail and rehab."

"That's not true Billy." Bones replied. "I just never had time to think about him very much. S**t, I barely had time to think about you or Joey."

"F***ing liar." Billy snarled. "You don't give a s**t about us. You only cared about the money from the corners. That's the only time you're ever happy to see us. Otherwise you would have forgotten about us just like you did with Jack."

"Look old man, you're on private property. Unless you want a bullet between your eyes I suggest you leave." Bobby warned aiming his gun at the large man claiming to be the father of the three Darley boys he was standing next to.

"You'd shoot me in front of Jack? Knowing there are witnesses around?"

"Guess you haven't heard of Bobby Mercer." Angel said. "People around here are loyal to him since he got rid of someone who was trying to kill people around here. He kills you and someone sees it they'll say Bobby did it in self defence."

"Don't think I came all this way for nothing boys." Bones said. "It's been sixteen years since I've seen my youngest and I will get reaquianted with him. I'll be back later. Happy birthday Jackie. It's good to see you again."

Billy and Bobby didn't lower their guns until they saw Bones walk across the street, climb into a car and drive off.

"Guys." Joe called almost panicked.

"S**t." Bobby gasped and quickly knelt next to Jack who was showing signs of a panic attack while being held by Jerry and Joe. "Jack, look at me. Jack."

The youngest didn't respond. His breathing remained rapid and his entire frame shook almost violently.

"Jackie." Billy called gently taking hold of his brothers head in an attempt to steady him. "Calm down Jack. Come on. Relax."

"Angel, go get Ma. Quick!" Bobby ordered.

Angel waisted no time in running into the house to find their mother who was the only person ever to calm Jack down when he was having a panic attack.

Bobby saw their mother rush out of the house with Angel right behind her a few seconds later.

"Jackie." She said taking Bobby's place in front of Jack. "Jackie, listen to me honey. You're ok. Calm down. Relax sweetheart. It's ok."

Billy started to relax himself when he saw Jack slowly return to normal. His breathing slowed and his shaking almost completely subsidded.

"Let's get him inside." Bobby said softly. Together, he and Joe were able to help Jack up, into the house and into his room where Angel helped him change into comfortable clothing and they let him lie on his bed.

"What happened?" Evelyn asked once Jack was lying down but clutching Billy's hand.

Billy took in a shaky breath before answering.

"Somehow...our dad followed us here. He tried to talk to Jack but we told him to leave and he did. Jack right away started to go into shock."

"Our dad was the one who caused us all so much pain when Jack was still with us." Joe continued. "He was always drunk or high and always took his frustration out on the three of us. It all finally caught up to him but not in the way we had hoped. He was arrested and we were put in a decent foster home for a while. But we got seperated when dad got out of jail and rehab. Foster system knew that he wouldn't stay clean and they kept Jack but gave me and Billy back to him since we were 'old enough' to know when to call them for help."

"Took all these years to find Jack and of course we found him two years ago with all of you here." Billy said. "I think Bones was high when he said this but when he realized that he was never gonna get Jack back he said that he knew he messed up and wanted him back more than anything else. But the years went by and he kinda forgot about the kid. He somehow figured out that me and Joe came all the way out here for something important. Guess he got a kick when he realized we came for Jackie's birthday. I really think he thought Jack was dead all this time."

"Man." Jerry muttered. "That guy is a monster."

"No s**t." Billy agreed. "These scars I got on my face are from him. I tried to keep him away from Joe and Jack as much as possible. I hated seeing him lay a hand on them. Even to this day there are times when I want to slit his throat for raising his voice to Joe. But I don't because I don't want my little brothers to know I'll be in prison for the rest of my life knowing that I killed someone who happened to be our 'dad'."

"How did he find you here?" Evelyn asked. "Did he follow you?"

"He couldn't have followed." Joe answered. "We were driving too fast for him to be able to keep up in his old car and especially at night. There's no way he could have followed us with how fast we were driving and he would have had to stop for the night since he traveled alone. Had to be some other way."

"Whatever way it was, it worked." Bobby said. "He found ya'll and he's already made it clear that he ain't leaving until he gets a word with Jack."

"I ain't lettin' him near Jack." Billy declared. "He made Jack see things he shouldn't have seen and made him suffer things he didn't deserve."

"I'll call the police in the morning and let them know about this." Evelyn said. "I think we should try to get to sleep."

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Evelyn lightly frowned when she heard the soft voices coming from the other side of the wall that seperated her room and Jack's.

The youngest of the brother's had come out of his shocked state and pleaded for Billy and Bobby to stay with him through the night out of fear that Bones would show up again.

Both older brother's agreed to Jack's plea and were keeping him company through the long hours of the night.

Jerry had gone home telling his mother that if they needed him to just give him a call and he'd be right over. Angel had double checked every window and door in the house to make sure they were locked properly.

Before he had gone to bed, Evelyn had asked Joe for a little more background on the Darley family when Jack had still been with them.

She found out things that made her understand why Jack was so scared at the thought of his biological father being anywhere near him.

Most of the things Joe had told her involved their father being on alcohol or drugs and him taking any kind of frustration out on the three of them with Billy trying to take most of it to keep his two little brother's safe.

It also made her realize just how deep a bond the three Darley boys have. It was equivilant to the bond the Mercer brother's had.

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Bobby peeked through the blinds to make sure there weren't any unfamiliar cars or people around. Seeing that there weren't any he turned his attention away from the window and to his younger brother that sat on his bed with his blood brother sitting next to him.

"It's ok Jackie." Billy assured softly.

"The hell it is." Jack lightly snapped surprising his brother's a little that he would speak back in that tone. But they understood that he was coming out of shock and didn't blame him for how he was acting. His eyes were red and puffy and his nerves had little calmed down since his panic attack. "He knows where we are. He could show up again at any minute."

"If he does you know that we won't let him near you." Bobby vowed placing himself in Jack's line of view. "I'll plug him full of caps before he can even get on the sidewalk."

Jack weakly nodded.

Bobby and Billy knew that the shock of seeing Bones again and then having the panic attack really wore Jack out mentally and physically. They were really surprised that he wasn't out cold right now but they assumed that the fear of Bones unexpectedly making a second appearance was keeping him awake.

"Jack, try to sleep." Billy suggested. "You're worn out and need to get some rest."

"No." Jack whispered as he shook his head in his brother's shoulder.

"He's right Jack. You need to sleep or else you'll get sick from stress." Bobby said. "We'll stay up the whole night and we won't leave this room for anything. We promise."

Jack seemed to slowly be convinced of Bobby's words. He knew that his two oldest brother's wouldn't let anything happen to him if he did go to sleep.

"We'll stay right here with you Jack." Billy vowed. "We'll stay up and make sure nothing happens. Ok?"

Jack was silent for a few moments before he finally nodded.

"Good. Come on. Lay down." Billy said helping Jack lay down but the youngest wasn't allowing his brother to leave his side.

Billy understood and settled himself on the bed with his back against the wall and his legs stretched across the bed and allowed Jack to lay a pillow on his lap. The older Darley then covered Jack with the blue comforter before getting ready to forcfully keep himself up for the remaining six or seven hours left before morning.

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Bobby snapped his head up before his eyes started to droop again and he snapped his head up again. It was about four twenty in the morning but it still felt like there were hours left before morning.

Billy was still sitting on the bed and wasn't fairing any better than Bobby in trying to stay awake since he was in a more comfortable position. He hadn't moved an inch so he wouldn't wake Jack up who managed to stay asleep. Most likely because his brother's were still with him.

The door creaked which caused the two to fully snap awake then relax when they saw it was Evelyn.

The kind woman weakly smiled when she saw the two relax from their alarmed state. She walked over and gave them the mugs she was holding that held steaming hot coffee.

"Just what I needed. Thank you." Billy mused in a whispered voice then took a long drink.

"How long has he been asleep?" she whispered looking at Jack.

"After we talked for a while we promised to stay awake and keep guard and managed to get him to go to sleep." Bobby explained. "Hasn't moved an inch the past five hours. He didn't want to go to sleep and only did because we said we'd stay here with him the whole night."

"He trusts you both." Evelyn said. "It's almost morning so hopefully the coffee will help. I'll come check on you boys again in a while."

"Don't stay up too long Ma." Bobby said.

"Alright. I'll come let you boys know when it's morning." Evelyn said before quietly leaving the room.

Bobby took a long drink of his coffee before looking over to Billy and Jack.

"How much did he see when he was still with you?" he asked softly.

"Too much in my opinion." Billy answered lightly rubbing Jack's shoulder with his free hand. "Even being as young as he was, I think he still remembers most of it. Things like what happened...I doubt he could ever forget. Our dad would hit us almost every day just because he felt like it. I'd have to grab money out of his wallet when he was passed to get food for Jack and Joe so they could eat otherwise they would have starved and I had figured out how to work the washing machine so they could always have something clean to wear. That day the the child services showed up and took us away...I had hoped that all three of us would never have to go back to our dad. But Jack was the only who got to stay away. I know that he went through bad homes before he came here but when I saw how happy and well taken care of he is here...I was glad that he was taken from us. He had a better life here with you and Evelyn."

"He never forgot about you and Joe." Bobby said holding his mug between his hands. "He'd tell us how you use to play games with him, let him watch cartoons, show him how to tie his shoes...He may have been with us longer but you and Joe will always be his real brother's and I envy that. I accept the fact that Jack and I are really just adopted brothers but I'm always gonna think of and see him as my baby brother."

"I'm glad you do though and I accept that fact that Jack sees you as his brother." Billy admitted. "Jack needed a big brother while he was growing up. He got three instead of one. But soon we'll all be brothers. Jack doesn't have to worry about us ever being apart again."

"That's true." Bobby agreed. "I'll have two more little brother's to slap around too."

Billy lightly chuckled hearing his future big brother joke with him. He himself was excited about the fact that he was going to have more brother's. Once the papers were signed he'll be the third of six Mercer boys with two older brother's and three younger brother's.

On top of that, a parent that actually showed him positive attention.

When Billy had first been around Evelyn he'd been a little unsure of her kind nature but quickly learned that she wasn't faking anything. For the first time in his life he actually felt a parent's care and it made him glad to know that Jack got to have her loving care and attention for the twelve years he'd been with her.

If he'd somehow stayed with them and their father, Jack most likely would be just like them or worse. Bones had never showed his sons positive attention and always belittled them. Treated them like they weren't his children at all.

Billy tried to give Joe as much positive attention as he could in hopes that the second Darley son wouldn't become as bitter and angry as he was. The oldest brother had taken most of the abuse away from Joe to protect him and it turned him into the hardcore and dangerous gang leader he is now.

"Are you sad that you missed so much time with him?" Bobby asked.

"Yeah." Billy answered. "Not having my baby brother around as we grew up...It killed me. I missed seeing him get this tall, missed so many birthdays, seeing him learn to play guitar...I missed out on most of his life."

"Well, you won't have to worry about missing anymore once the papers are signed and you get the house next door." Bobby assured.

"Thank goodness." Billy agreed. "I don't want to miss out on anymore of Jack's life. I wanna see him become that rock star he's always dreamed of. Be there for him like I wanted to be. Make up for all the lost years."

"Guess now is as good a time as any." Bobby said looking out the window again.

"Guess so." Billy agreed lightly running his hand through Jack's hair.

He really hoped that once the business with his father was done that he could devote his time to getting things together. Moving into the house next door, getting his new business set up but most importantly spending time with his younger brother.

Having missed out on more than half of Jack's life, Billy wanted to catch up for the lost time. Spoil his little brother and just hang out with him.

He really hoped that dealing with Bones wouldn't mess up any of his plans.

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The sky started to change from black to redish orange as the sun was slowly starting to rise.

The morning after Jack's birthday and the morning after the night that Bones Darley made his appearance.

Bobby and Billy had succeeded in staying awake all night to look after their youngest brother. It had taken two cups of coffee each but they did it.

Evelyn had gone to tell the two of them that it was morning but neither one wanted to leave and had settled themselves to sleep in Jack's room.

The youngest of the brother's was still out cold which left Billy to sleep slouching against the headboard with a pillow placed behind his head and shoulders. Despite the position he was in he was sleeping very soundly.

Bobby had fallen asleep in the reclining desk chair and was softly snoring with a pillow behind his head and a thin blanket covering him.

Evelyn had decided to let the two sleep since she knew they would sleep the entire day anyway because they were up all night.

Jack continued to stay in the same position he was in as he continued to sleep. The signs of being worn out from the stress he'd gone through were obvious in the way he slept.

Angel and Joe kept things quiet while the three slept and kept guard of the house. No one left or entered.

Joe had further explained to Angel and Evelyn how his father had connections in many places. Detroit was one of them. He didn't want any of them taking chances leaving the house until Billy woke up and the discussed what to do next.

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Jack lightly stirred as he started to wake up. He opened his eyes and slowly sat up.

"You feeling better Jackie?" a voice asked.

Jack looked up and saw Billy looking at him with concerned eyes. The younger didn't fail to notice that his brother looked tired. Most likely a result of him staying up all night. But he was dressed in different clothes and looked to have showered.

The youngest looked at the clock on his nightstand and noticed it was almost eleven thirty.

"Yeah." Jack answered.

"Here Jack." Bobby said.

Jack looked up and saw Bobby handing him a beer bottle that had a small pink ribbon tied in a bow around it.

"You only had two yesterday. We promised you three." Billy said.

The youngest weakly smiled as he took the bottle then lightly glared at Bobby as he held it up.

"How is it you call me a fairy but you're the one who knows how to tie ribbons and bows?" he asked softly.

"You calling me a fairy Jack?" Bobby playfully challenged, glad to see his youngest brother smile for the first time all day.

"Maybe." Jack replied. "Thanks for staying with me all night guys. Sorry I made ya'll stay up like that."

"Hey, don't feel sorry." Bobby said sitting next to his brother and put an arm around his shoulders. "Even when you were little, I never saw you freak out so bad before. You know I know when something doesn't seem right. I wasn't about to let you be by yourself for the night knowing that your 'dad' is in town and how easily freaked out you were."

"Me either Jackie." Billy added. "I ain't gonna leave you or Joe alone while Bones is around. He's gonna have to go through me to get to you."

"Same with me." Bobby said. "We won't leave you alone Jack. One of us will always be with you. With a loaded gun of course."

"Of course." Jack repeated with a small smirk then turned serious. "Do I have to leave the house much?"

"No. You can stay inside as much as you want. I think it would be a lot safer for you anyway." Bobby answered. "Ma's already on the phone with Green. She's letting him know what's going on. Angel's on patrol right now. Making sure everything's quiet around here. Jerry let Camille know what's going on just in case but he's sending them to Camille's parent's until we get things under control."

"I called the boys and they're heading this way to help us out." Billy said. "Believe me Jackie, they're just as ready to let a bullet go through Bones' head just as much as me and Joe."

"After how you told me he treats you and the guys, I believe it." Jack said right before Billy's phone started to ring.

Billy looked at the caller I.D. and cursed under his breath before answering it.

"What the f**k do you want?" he demanded.

Jack and Bobby watched Billy as he talked on the phone.

"We already told you. You ain't goin' near him." Billy declared.

Jack lightly gasped, the beer bottle falling from his hand and started to lightly shake as he realized who his brother was talking to. Bobby quickly brought Jack into his embrace in an attempt to calm him down.

"No. You ain't talkin' to him." Billy snapped. "You're not going to have anything to do with Jack. You didn't give a d**n about him before."

Billy paused for a few seconds before sighing heavily.

"Fine. I'll meet you there. But don't think you can try to pull anything. Joe and the rest of the Mercer brother's are with Jack. They ain't gonna leave him alone no matter what."

Billy ended the call.

"I'm gonna have to put a bullet through his head for him to realize he's not coming anywhere within ten feet of you Jack." he said.

"Billy, you can't go alone man." Bobby stated.

"I know but I don't want Jack to be alone." Billy agreed. "Please. Can you, Joe and Angel stay here with him? I won't be gone long."

"Yeah. We'll stay. Call us if you think something is gonna happen." Bobby sighed in defeat of convincing Billy stay.

"I will."

"Be careful Billy." Jack said softly.

"I will Jackie. I promise." Billy said before leaving the room.


	4. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

**By: MysticFantasy**

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**.**

Billy kept a firm grip on the steering wheel as he drove down the street. His thoughts were so mixed up that he was surprised he was able to drive without crashing into anything. But he kept reminding himself that his brother's were waiting for him back at the Mercer house and it made him concentrate on the road.

He came to a road that was under an overpass and parked his car. He right away noticed another familiar car only a few feet away and climbed out. He walked over and lightly glared at the man who was his father.

"Wish you coulda brought them with ya." Bones said flicking his cigarette to the ground.

"I already told you that I ain't letting you near them. Not after all the hell you put them through." Billy replied. "You showing up sent Jack into shock."

"I didn't mean for that to happen." Bones said.

"Yeah, sure." Billy said sarcastically. "So what the hell do you want?"

"I want to spend time with Jackie of course." Bones answered.

"Not gonna happen." Billy declared. "I already told you that I'm not letting you near them. The Mercer boys won't let you near Jack either. Especially Bobby Mercer. He'll shoot you without a first thought about it."

Bones lightly narrowed his eyes.

"I will see him Billy." he said.

"You do and I will kill you myself." Billy warned in a cold voice. "You come within so much as a block near Jack and I will kill you."

"You've had plenty of chances to do that Billy." Bones said heading to his car. He paused after opening the door and looked back to his oldest son. "Let's see if you can keep me away this time."

Billy was breathing angrily as he watched his father climb into his car and drive off.

_I kept you away from him plenty of times when we were kids. I can do the same now._ Billy thought to himself heading to his own car.

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Bobby quickly glanced at Jack who was sitting on the couch with Joe right next to him and Bodie sitting on the other side of Joe.

The members of Billy's gang had arrived about twenty minutes after Billy left and were constantly patrolling throughout the house to make sure everything was ok.

Evelyn came out of the kitchen with a tray holding several steaming mugs.

"Here boys. All of you take one." she said placing it on the coffee table.

The present members each took a mug while respectfully thanking Evelyn. Having been around Evelyn made the gang members act different. When they were around other people they were their usual hardcore selves but when Evelyn was present they were almost as respectful to her as Billy and Joe were.

They were polite, quiet and did everything to show they respected that she accepted them for who they are and what they do. They could at least tone it down around her.

"No sign of Billy yet?" Heco asked handing Bobby a mug.

"Not yet." Bobby answered taking the mug with a thankful nod. He took a long sip of the steaming coffee before looking out the window again. Billy had been gone for nearly over an hour and it was starting to worry them.

Jack and Joe most since Billy is their brother but also because they know what Bones was capable of. They didn't want to go through their childhood all over again now that they're grown adults.

The sudden rumbling of an engine caught their attention. Bobby and Heco looked outside to see who it was.

"It's Billy." Heco announced watching as Billy climbed out of the car and came to the house.

Dog was already by the door and opened it. Billy walked in and removed his jacket.

"How'd it go?" Angel asked.

"That fat f**k ain't gonna quit." Billy declared calmly. "Says he's gonna see Jack one way or another."

"We'll keep guard man. Day and night. If he shows up we'll show him that he ain't gettin' close the front porch." Spink declared with the other men agreeing with him.

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"Why do you think he wants to see me so bad after all this time?" Jack asked softly sitting on his bed with his two blood brothers. "He never cared before."

"I don't know Jackie." Billy answered placing a gentle arm around his shoulders. "He could be doing it just to mess with us but he could have something else in mind."

"Why can't he just leave us alone?" Jack whispered.

"At least you." Joe said sitting next to Jack. "You don't need to be around him after everything he did when you were still with us."

"You guys don't need to be around him either." Jack lightly stated. "You were both stuck with him all these years. I know he wasn't any nicer than when I was still with you."

"He wasn't." Billy said honestly. "But like before I tried to keep all of that negative attention on me. It worked most of the time."

"But look what happened anyway." Joe lightly stated. "We turned out to be thugs."

"But I can tell that you're different when you're here with us." Jack said.

"Just like you, Evelyn brings out the good side of us Jackie." Billy said with a faint smile. "She brought out a side of me that I thought I lost a long time ago. She reminded me that I do have a softer side. When you had to leave I lost that side of me. I looked after Joe but I wasn't the same."

"Still kept an eye on me." Joe stated. "I'm alive thanks to you Billy. Dad never fed us so I know I would have starved if it hadn't been for you."

"I remember you doing that for me too." Jack said. "I remember seeing you go through his wallet, taking money, leaving and then coming back with a bag of food."

Billy weakly chuckled. He was a little surprised that Jack remember such things since he'd been so young when that happened.

"I wasn't about to let my little brother's go hungry." he said giving Jack's shoulders a light squeeze. "I did what I had to to make sure that the two of you were ok."

"Why didn't you do that for yourself too?" Joe asked softly. "I barely remember seeing you eat with us. As far as I can remember, there were times when you didn't get anything for yourself because you gave it all to us."

Billy lightly sighed.

"Yeah, you're right Joey." he said. "Dad started to catch on that money was missing from his wallet so I had to start taking a little less. Then I would sneak off and get what I could with what I had. It wasn't enough for the three of us but it was plenty for the both of you. Don't worry about it though. I snuck a few things when I was getting something for the both of you. I was old enough to know what I needed but my biggest worry was the two of you. You were both already so little."

"Do you still feel that way even though we're adults now?" Jack asked.

Billy lightly smiled.

"Jackie, you and Joe are my little brother's. Of course I still feel that way." he said.

Jack and Joe lightly chuckled.

"Big brother's." Joe commented jokingly.


	5. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

**By: MysticFantasy**

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**.**

"I heard Billy mention that you guys wanna kill Bones almost as much as him." Bobby said standing out on the closed off porch with Dog and Spink. It was the first night watch and the three of them had volunteered to take the first shift. "Can I ask why?"

"That f***er deserves it." Spink answered. "We've been working for him for a while but no matter how hard we try to keep things steady he's always got something to say. Billy always got the worst of it but we had our share of his s***ty attitude."

"It would be better if Billy was in charge anyway." Dog added. "Billy's got a lot of good ideas for us and we can do that if Bones was out of the picture."

"So do it." Bobby declared. "I know I would. I wouldn't put up with that kind of person."

"We want to but we think it would be so much sweeter if Billy took care of things like that." Spink said. "To be honest, we all want to see him show Bones that he ain't gonna be around much longer."

"Maybe Billy will let us get a few licks in and then he can finish him off." Dog suggested with a grin.

"I hope so man." Spink said.

"You guys sound like you've been wanting this to happen for a long time." Bobby said with a smirk.

"Only a few years or so." Dog said casually but with a large grin.

Bobby chuckled as he looked outside the windows to check if there was anything out of the ordinary. Nothing so far and he wanted it to stay that way. Jack had been so petrified when Bones had made his appearance and he didn't want to see that on his little brother again.

Not ever again.

He was glad that Billy had called his boys in for extra back-up since the oldest Darley brother had given them an a-z explaination of Bones earlier. Sure he and Angel could watch the house perfectly but he felt that it was safer for the youngest brother and Evelyn if there was extra help.

Still, Bobby couldn't help but wonder what was going to happen if things weren't settled soon.

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"Then you came out of the room with this big smile on your face and then Joe comes out after waking up from his nap and he's got finger paint all over his face." Billy said through laughter. He smiled more when Jack laughed at the story of something he'd done when he was a toddler.

"I had asked you why you painted Joey's face and you said 'to make him look pretty'." Billy continued and made his two younger brother's laugh.

"How did I really look?" Joe asked between laughter.

"Like a circus clown after a night at the bar." Billy answered.

"Man, I bet that was a sight to see." Jack said once his laughter died down a bit.

"It was." Billy agreed still smiling. "I was never bored with the two of you always doing something crazy. Like when Joey tried cutting your hair."

"He what?" Jack exclaimed reaching up to his golden hair while staring at Joe.

"He tried to cut your hair." Billy explained. "You were about three and you had that mop head hair style. It was getting in your eyes all the time and Joe decided to help you out by trying to cut it. He ended up cutting off a huge chunk of your hair. I found out when you came running to me and told me what happened. I snatched some money from dad and took you to the barber to get it fixed. Your hair was kinda like Joe's is right now and it looked good on you."

"Guess that's where I got the idea to have it like this." Jack said.

"Everything worked out in the end." Joe said and lightly sighed. "Good times."

"Those were some good times." Billy agreed. "Soon we'll all be Mercer's and we'll be making some more good memories. Right Jackie?"

"Right." Jack agreed. "As soon as all of this s**t is taken care of."

"Hey, we're not gonna let anything get in the way of us signing those papers and becoming Mercer's." Billy said. "We made you that promise when we found you. We weren't gonna let anything get in the way of us being together again. I'm gonna do everything I can to keep that promise."

"But you'll have to go back to Boston eventually." Jack said.

"Not really." Joe answered with a smile.

"What do you mean?" Jack asked curiously.

"Well, you know why that for sale sign next door vanished?" Billy replied and saw a small hopeful smile appear on Jack's face. "We got the house next door Jackie."

"Really?" Jack asked as his smile widened.

"Sure did." Billy answered. "Already gave the first months payment. We were gonna wait to tell you when the papers were signed but we thought you could use a little cheering up."

Jack smiled and hugged his older brother.

"I don't ever want us to be seperated like that again." he said into Billy's shoulder.

"We won't Jackie." Billy said hugging his little brother. "The only time we're gonna leave soon is when we go back to Boston to get our stuff. But we're coming right back and the guys even want to come. They want to go straight just like us."

"This is cheering me up a bit." Jack said with a small smile. "Knowing you guys are gonna stay here and we're all gonna be one family...I couldn't be happier."

"I can think of a few ways to make you happier Jackie." Billy said. "Plenty of beer."

"Too bad it's not my birthday anymore." Jack replied.

"True, but you did miss that third beer." Joe said bringing out a bottle of beer and handing it to the youngest.

"This is just what I need." Jack said.

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"Shift change." Angel said walking outside.

"About time." Bobby yawned.

"Quit cryin'." Angel said as Bobby, Spink and Dog went inside. "You sure you can stay up this late?"

"Dude, me and Billy would do this exact same thing when we were kids. When Jackie was still with us. We'd stay up just to make sure we could warn each other when our dad was coming." Joe answered sitting on the chair.

"D**n. That guy really is a monster huh?"

"Sure is." Joe answered with a nod. "I'll be happy when I don't have to put with him anymore. I mean, that might sound cold but I can't help it. He's our dad but he tortured us. There were days where we wouldn't eat or have anything clean to wear. Billy really is the reason that me and Jack survived all that time."

"Wow. I don't know what I would have done if I was in that situation." Angel said. "Have ya'll ever tried running away?"

"Plenty of times." Joe answered. "We almost made it once but a cop caught us and made us go back. He thought that we were just a bunch of stupid kids. He said we either go home or go to a foster home. Had we known what a foster home was at the time we probably would have gone with that choice. Would have been a better choice than staying with our dad."

"Times like that that I'm glad my real parent's didn't give a s**t about me."

"Do you know anything about your biological family?" Joe asked.

"Not much." Angel answered. "I know that I was from a big family and that my birth parent's were a bunch of junkies. Those are really the only things I know."

"None of them have tried looking for you?"

"Nope. Doesn't matter to me anyway. I got all that I need right here. With you and Billy becoming my new brother's, I feel like I've doubled on my luck."

Joe smiled hearing Angel's thoughts about him and Billy being taken into the Mercer family. He and Billy hadn't been totally clear about how the three older Mercer brother's felt about them joining the family.

He knew they were happy that Jack was getting his two biological brother's but they weren't too clear about having two more people join the Mercer family.

Now Joe could relax a little more around the three older Mercer men. Hearing how Angel felt gave him enough confidence that things would work out once all of this mess was taken care of.

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"Bones Darley. 46 years old..."

Jack sat quietly as his brother gave their father's description to Lt. Green, an old 'friend' of the family. He pretty much knew what he would heard once Green had all of the info. Until something was actually done toward any of them, there wasn't anything they could do to keep Bones away from them.

Sure enough, that's exactly what Green said once he was done writing down the information.

But one look at Bobby and Billy and Jack knew that, once again, things were gonna be settled the old fashioned way.


End file.
